Thursday, March 15, 2012

We have been kindly given a copy of Exotic Gardening by Ian Cooke, signed by the author to give away to one lucky reader.

Ian Cooke will be well known to many of you having written several gardening books as well as being a garden designer and RHS Judge. Ian also has his own Garden Blog - Pampas2Palms where you can catch up with his gardens both in the UK and USA.

Featuring guides to exotic plants as well as advice on propagation and tips to get the best out of your plants Ian's book should be a must have to anyone growing exotics in the UK (and further afield).

Illustrated with pictures of the plants themselves and also a number of well designed exotic gardens the book covers larger and smaller gardens. We have had our own copy of this book since it was released and can confirm it is an enjoyable read.

Simply reply to this thread telling us about your favourite exotic plant.

You can gain additional entries by retweeting @markngaz promoting the competition on twitter; mentioning the competition on your own blog; or by sharing the link to this competition from the Alternative Eden Facebook page (you must like the page to share the link). The number of entries will not increase if you retweet or share links more than once.

Good luck and don’t forget to subscribe to our blog to ensure you don’t miss out on future competitions and posts.

Terms and conditions: This competition closes at 23.59 on 30.03.2012. Any entries received after this time will not be counted. Entrants must be UK residents aged 18 years or older to enter. By entering this competition you agree and consent to your name being published and by taking part in the competition, entrants are deemed to have read, understood and accepted all of the Terms and Conditions and agreed to be bound by them. The winner will be selected at random and will be announced here on the blog.

How lovely! But to choose a favourite plant, well that is the hard bit. I adore, Colocasia, for their huge leaves, then along came my bamboo plants, which swayed so beautifully in the wind. My faithful ensete, which comes back year after year, no matter what mother nature throws at it. But then my newest purchase Butia capitata has also captured my heart. I am sorry, I can't choose just one.

Thanks to all the entries so far - even Don and his petunias - I'll buy you some seed as a consolation if you dont win!

Remember to make sure we can contact you if you win, either by leaving a link to your blog/website or an email. If you prefer not to share your email on the www then drop us an email - see our contact page for the address.

Loree, i'm glad its on the US Amazon too, always nice to find a new book. Ian does spend time in the US over the winter period, although he is now back inthe UK.

KL - thanks for the encouragement, its nice to be able to give this lovely prize away!

For me it has to be the Tree Fern, we have just returned from the holiday of a lifetime to New Zealand and the Tree ferns in the native bush are so spectacular. The climate on the South Island is so similar to England that we really should be able to have some success with one or two here on the Isle of Wight, so that is this year's mission.

Bird of Paradise Strelitzia reginae is my fav. When I left it in the ground through a cold winter and it sprouted back out the following spring I knew it was a keeper. (Kids, don't try this at home, I'm in US zone 8b.)Now I pot it and trundle it inside for the winter in hopes of finally getting a bloom.

It is very hard to pick. I toyed with Trachycarpus wagnerianus, flirted with Farfugium japonicum aureomaculata, sighed over Schefflera aff. chapana, and failed to come up with a 'z' verb for Zantedeschia 'White Giant'. Ultimately though, I treasure my Trevesia palmata, and hope one day it will produce those snowflake leaves I bought it for.Nearly missed the competition closure deadline too!

Ok, here is my post and comment on entering the competition for the Exotic Gardening book. I have heard of this book, and think it would be very cool to have, mainly as I love to learn all I can on creating my dream exotic garden. Any book is a valuable tool of learning!ThanksRoland

This gardening blog follows our journey as we create our Tropical and Exotic themed garden. We hope you'll enjoy the journey as much as we do. We started our Exotic Garden in 2005 and this site will show its development, as well as our travels, both abroad and within the UK to gardens, nurseries and friends.See also our full about page